And frank ii



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

B. L. HARRIS.

GRIP FOR CABLE RAILWAY GARS.

uv Firms. Pme-ummm.: wmmmm usc.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

B. L. HARRIS.

GRIP FOR CABLE RAILWAY GARS.

(No Model.)

No. 394,539. Patented Dec. 11, 1888.

(No Model.) I 3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

B. L. HARRIS.

GRIP POR CABLE RAILWAY GARS.

No. 394,539. Patented Deo. 11, 1888.

PETERS. Prwwumngmphar. wuwngxm u c.

FFICE.

BRADNER L. HARRIS, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR OF TIIREE-FOI'RTHS TO JAMES I). LEI-DIER, OF CINCINNATI, OIIIO, AND FRANK II. ELLIS, OF

ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

GRIP FOR CABLE-RAILWAY CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 394,539, dated December 11, 1888.

Application led *tiny 9,1888. Serial No. 273,286. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, BRADNER L. HARRIS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Detroit, in the county of Vayne and State of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Grips for Cable-Railway Cars, of which the following' is a specification. My present invention is an improvement on the grip for which, on the 3d day of January, 1o 1888, Letters Patent of the United States were issued jointly to James D. Lehmer and myself, said Letters Patent being numbered 375,997 and it consists- First. In providing means whereby the cable can readily be disengaged and thrown from the carryingewheels and grip -frame, should an accident occur from any cause, as by reason of the cable strands becoming loose, thereby endangering their catching in 2o the gripping mechanism or frame and causing damage. These same remarks will apply to the ready manner in which the cable can be disengaged from the grip when the car is about to cross another cable. Second. The facility with which the operating-lever can be worked without the operator changing' his position or exercising an unusual reach. Y Third. In providing mechanism whereby a 3o double grip is obtained, and which can be used where either a switch or turn-table is e1nployedthat is to say, in case of a switch, when the car is" proceeding in one direction, one set of the binding-rollers will act, and 3 5 when switched onto the returntrack the cable will be thrown so as to be automatically brought into connection with the other set of binding-rollers.

These features, as well as others incidental thereto, will be understood from the description which I will give, and by reference to the accompanying drawings, forming pa'rtof my application, in whichlFigure l is an elevation of my grip and its attachments, showing' the cable held between one set of the binding-rollers. Fig. 2 is also an elevation showing' the cable held between the other set of rollers when the car is switched onto the return-track. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view taken through the lower por- 5o tion of Fig. l or i?, and shows the cable held between one set of the binding-rollers and in contact with the throw-outs, ready, if desired,

to be disengaged from the grip. Fig. l isa view showingl a portion of the actuating-level' and 55 segment-rack. Fig. 5 is a cross-section taken through the line 5 5 of Fig. al. Fig. (i is also a cross-section taken through the line U t3 of Fig. l. Fig. 7 is a perspective view illustrating more clearly the formation of my double 6o grip and the manner in which the levers that carry the binding-rollers are connected and operated.

The letter A represents the frame which carries the gripping mechanism. This frame is attached to the car in any convenient and durable manner. Its upper portion is segmental in shape, and is composed of duplicate pieces, which are connected together by the bolts b in such manner as to leave a space 7o between them, so that the lever L can be 0perated back and forth. This slot or space affords a guide and lateral guard for the said lever. This is seen more clearly by referring to Figs. 5 and 6. The teeth of this segment 75 are peripheral, and, beginning at the middle thereof, diverge or run in opposite directionsthat is to say, one side will have the teeth inclined in one direction, while the opposite is the case on the other. 8o

P is a pawl for engaging' with the teeth on the segment. This pawl through its round stem is connected by means of a swivel-joint to a spindle, (i, which in turn is supported by the crank-lever F, pivoted on the operating-lever L. The lower portion Of lever L is pivoted tothe cross-plate O. Rigidly attached to the lever L is a collar, o', which embraces the swiveled spindle C, and between the collar and the swiveled connection and 9o around the said spindle is a spring, p, which performs the operation of reseating the pawl when the drawingforce from above is removed.

G is a collar embracing the lever L and the pawl P. This collar is movable and adapted to slide up and down the lever L, and its interior at the point where it embraces the pawl is squared or angular, in order to hold and lock the pawl so that it may not slip out of itsproper position.

fr i are pms on either side of the lever L, and they are designed as a seat for the collar G and limit its drop. t is the knob by which the collar G is raised.

Suitably connected to the lower end of lever L is a link, Y, which at the point of connection is slotted, in order to permit the bolt or rivet f" to have the propel' freedom or play when being operated. The middle of this link Y is fulcrumed at f to cross-bar l-Lwhich is above t-he slotted rail T. Either end of cross-bar H extends beyond the sides of the grip-frame, where they are provided with handles which are utilized when the gripframe and its affixed mechanism are to be removed from the cable conduit or tunnel.

levers similar to J, K, M, and N are dupli-` cated on the other side of plate S, and are operated similarly by lever L throughthe intermediate link, Y. This is shown in Figs. l, 2, and 3,l but more particularly in Fig. 7. The duplicate levers are marked M' and N', while the binding-wheels which they carry are indi` cated by U' and V', while the two otherbinding-wheels are marked U and V, respectively,`

as shown in Fig. l.

W is the cable, the arrow indicating the direction in which it is traveling.

cb a' 19 b' represent the cable carrying wheels properly secured in the frame to the cross-bar s, as shown.

Attached tothe lower portion of the frame are what I would term "throw-outs S' and D', each being also duplicated on the other side of the grip-frame. slide up and down, and may be held in position in any suitable manner, as by guide-pins c c in connection with guard-irons g g, properly attached to cross plate S, as shown. These throw-outs at their lower ends are bellshaped on one-side; or they may be in the form of an incline plane, as seen more plainly and particularly in Fig. 3. The bottoms of these throw-outs, when they are in their normal positions, extend down below the cable, as seen in Figs. l and 2.

Throw-outs S' are provided with an arm, n, so that when the lever M is drawn up the roller U will strike and actuate it. Throw-outs D', however, which, considered by themselves,are just the same in construction as the others, are somewhat differently actuated. To their upper ends are pivoted arms g', which work on fulcrum f. As the lever N is forced down, the heel y' vwill be tilted back, striking the arm g' on its free end, thus throwing up the other end, sufficient play being obtained through the medium of the slot at the pivotal point. This action will raise throw-out D', and in its rise They are adapted tol slotted rail T. These chafing-irons are for the y purpose of making the frame more durable, and when they become worn out they can easily be removed and others inserted in their places.

e e are set-screws on which the grooved plate or bed P' rests. On this bed-plate the cable between the carrying-wheels finds a resting spot. The set screws e are inserted through the plate s, and as the plate is worn away by friction of the cable the degree of wear is compensated by raising the set-screws to the desired height, and this action in turn raises the bed-plate P.

Having described the specific parts of my gripping mechanism, I will now proceed and explain their mode of operation.

NVe .will suppose the cable is going in the direction as indicated in Fig. 1,'and the operating-lever L and pawl P are in the positions indicated in said iigure; the car being at rest, the operator pulls back the lever. have the effect of tilting the link Y so as to actuate the arms J K, throwing the former forward and the latter backward. This movement will cause the levers M and N to be actuated, bringing the former lever,with its binding-wheel, backward toward cable-carrying Wheel a, and throwing the other lever,with its wheel V, toward the cable-carrying wheel b. The more the lever L is drawn back the greater will be the binding force or pressure exerted on the cable, which is between said upper and lower wheels. to stop the car, the lever L pushed forward again to that point on the segment which will raise the wheels U and V from the vcable and `relieve it from the exerted pressure, the pawl P in the meantime having been drawn from the teeth by grasping the crank-lever F', in order to permit of the operating-lever being pushed forward; but while the car is progressing, as above described, should it become necessary, from any cause whatever, to disengage the cable from the carrying-wheels a b, the lever is pushed forward farther still. This will have the effect of throwing up wheel U, and it, coming into contact with throw-out S' ,by means of the arm n, will raise it also. In Fig. 3 it will be seen that this operation is about to take place. As the ascent is being made,

the inclined portion of the throw-out will come into contact with the cable and force it from `its seat on the carrying-wheel, and finally entirely off same, 4as indicated by the arrow and dotted lines in said Fig. 3.'

This will Y IOO IIO

=While this is occurring, and simultaneously therewith, the heel y' on lever N will be thrown backward, striking and carrying with it in its downward course the free end of arm g'. This movement will force up throw-out D', with the result heretofore mentioned. Now then suppose the cable has been replaced on the grip and the carhas reached the terminus of the line and there is no turn-table, but the car has to be run onto the return-track by means of any proper switch. That was before the front end of the car now becomes the rear. The cable is disengaged from the gripframe, as before stated. The switch-plate is then brought into contact with the cable and throws it over to that side of the car which was before the left, but which on the returntrip becomes the right. The cable is now brought so as to come into a right line with the carrying-wheels on the side of the frame opposite to that on which it was before carried. A sheave in the cable-conduit, which is raised somewhat higher than the ordinary sheaves, holds the cable, and asthe car is moved onto the return-track the cable is on an incline until it iinally finds a level and rests on the carrying-wheels of the grip-frame, when a purchase can be effected, as before described; but before this can be done the gripman reverses the pawl P, seating it in that portion of the segment the teeth of which run in a direction opposite to that heretofore described. This reversal of the pawl is accomplished by raising the collar G from the square or angular portion of the pawl, as indicated in Figs. l, 2, and 4L. There now being no hinderance, the pawl can be turned and placed in the desired position. This explanation will be more apparent by referring to Figs. 2 and 4, where the pawl is shown in a position reverse to that shown in Fig. l.

Of course where turn-tables are employed but one set of the carrying-wheels and their corresponding binding-rollers are used, there being no occasion to shunt or change the cable from one side of the frame to the other, or disengage it at all from the grip, except when crossings are encountered or an accident occurs.

The grip herein shown and described is designed to be placed in and operated from the middle of the car; but, if desired, it may be placed on and operated from the ends either directly by the upright lever L and link Y, or the mechanism can be operated through the instrumentality of draw-levers, such as are shown and described in my Patents Nos. 372,144 and 375,997.

Having thus described my invention, whatI claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Pat-ent, is-

l. In a grip for cable-railway cars, the throwouts S' D', suitably secured to both sides of the grip-frame, the double binding-levers M M N N and their attached rollers, the levers N N being each provided with a heel which actuates an arm, g', pivoted to throw-out D',

while throw-out S' is actuated through the arm n, in combination with arms J K, link Y, and lever L, connected together as shown and described, and for the purposes specified.

2. In a grip for cable-railway cars, a segment-rack, as R, composed of two portions so connected together as to form away in which the lever L can operate, the teeth of said rack diverging in opposite directions from thc center, in combination with reversible pawl P, removable collar G, rigid collar O', intermediate spring, p, stem C, and cranked leverF', pivoted to the lever L, all substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes specified.

3. In a cable-grip, the toothed segment R, lever L, collars G and O', reversible pawl P, cranked lever F', stem C, and intermediate spring, p, in combination with cross-plate H, link Y, arms J K, and their attached levers, which carry the binding-rollers, all arranged substantially as shown and described, an d for the purposes noted.

4. A cable-gripper comprising the following elements: the frame A, carrying-wheels a a' b h', secured therein, and intermediate adjustable bed-plate, P', in combination with springs Z Z and their accompanying throw-outs S' and D' on either side of the frame,having arms n g', all arranged substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes specified.

5. In a cable-gripper, the cross-plate S, to which the binding-levers and affixed rollers are pivoted, in combination with guard-irons g g, throw-outs S' and D', stops c c, arms n and g', and intermediate springs, Z Z, arranged substantially in the manner shown and described, and for the purposes specified.

6. The sliding collar G, capable of locking and unlocking the reversible pawl P, in combination with said pawl and operating-lever L, substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes noted.

7. The locking-collar G, reversible pawl P, and the operating -lever L, provided with stops, as lZ i, to limit the drop of said collar, substantially as shown.

8. A cable-grip comprising the following elements: the frame A, carrying-wheels d d' b b', secured thereon, intermediate bed-plate, P', resting on set-screws e e, throw-outs S' D on either side of the frame, the arms n g', whereby said th row-outs are actuated through the instrumentality of one of the bindingwheels, and a heel on one of the binding-levers, substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes noted.

9. The following elements in combination in a grip for cable-railway cars: cable-carrying wheels located on either side of the gripframe A, the binding-rollers U U' V V', also on either side of the frame and connected to levers M M' N N', which are actuated through the instrumentality of arms J K, intermediate link, Y, and operating-lever L, in combination with a segment whose teeth are oppositely inclined for the reception of reversible pawl P,

IOO

IIO

which is held or released by collar G and operated by lever F through the medium of stem C, substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes noted.

l0. In a cable-grip, the cross-plates S, to which the binding levers and rollers are pivoted, in combination with guard-irons g g and throw-outs S and D', arms n and g', and intermediate springs, H, substantially as shown 1oand described.

11. The levers N and N', provided with a heel each', which actuate levers g and operate throw-outs D in combination with Uuardirons g, springs Z, and stop-pins c, substantially as shown and described, and for the purposes 15 noted. Y

BRADNER L. HARRIS.

Witnesses:

W. ELLWooD WYNNE, J ERE. F. TWoHIG. 

